We had a fabulous time, starting in Athens, then renting a car for a three-day road trip to the oracle and temples at Delphi, the spectacular monasteries at Meteora, the pass at Thermopylae and the plains of Marathon. After another night in Athens, we flew to Santorini with its incredible vistas and enjoyed hiking, swimming, sunsets in Oia, and wonderful Greek cooking before returning for two final days in Athens.

Road Trip Through the Deep South

30 January to 19 February, 2014

The photos below are of William Faulkner's house in Oxford, Mississippi, Elvis' birthplace in Tupelo, and markers celebrating the life and music of 'Mississippi Fred' McDowell, who I had the pleasure of knowing in the 1970s, having produced a concert with him and then visiting him at his home in Como, Mississippi. The road trip itself had stops to see daughter Sarah and grandson Siyah in Fredericksburg VA, second cousin Chris Hood and family in Atlanta GA,step-mom Gavin and step-sisters Susan and Mary Ann in Ocala FL, friends John Tulp and Michael Grant for flats fishing in the Florida Keys, a stop to see a boat identical to Hemingway's Pilar in West Palm Beach FL, cousin Steve Hood in Mobile AL, Elvis' birthplace in Tupelo MS, long time friend Dick Waterman inOxford MS, historical blues sites in Comoand Clarksdale MS, and cousin Rob McFarland and wife Mary Ann as well as Buthaina's brother Mazin and wife Terri and family, in St. Louis, as well as friends Pat Newcomb and Katherine Cauley in Dayton OH.

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Buthaina and Jeffrey's

Excellent Irish Road Trip

March 30 - April 6, 2013

Arrived in Dublin early on Easter morning and spent six glorious days driving the triangle to Galway, Cork and back to Dublin. Scenic highlights were the Cliffs of Moher, the Burren, the Dingle peninsula (above), the Killarney lakes district, and the West Cork coastal route. Historical sites included the the Newgrange burial mound (3200 BCE), Clonmacnoise Monastery (545 CE), Dunguaire Castle (16th C.), Blarney Castle (1446 CE) and manor park, Charles Fort (1670) and the Rock of Cashel (12th C.). We had superb dinners at Dromoland Castle (Newmarket-on-Fergus) and Blairs Inn (Blarney), lunches at The Boat Yard (Dingle), The Speckled Door (Kinsale Old Head) and the Guinness Brewery (Dublin), and a lavish breakfast in medieval surroundings at the neo-Gothic 1720 Adare Manor. Our last night in Dublin was celebrated with Irish traditional music and step-dancing at the Hotel Arlington on the River Liffey.

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Buthaina and I enjoyed the magic of Venice, the artistry of Florence, the gritty majesty of Rome, and the timelessness of Pompeii, followed by a wondrous weekend with friend Claudia Vaughn at her country house in Montebuono (full moon below is from her guest bedroom!), 100 kms north of Rome, exploring Narni and other small Umbrian hill towns, including the highest waterfall in Europe.

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View from Claudia's house in Montebuono

Staunton, Virginia: March 3-4, 2011

Drove down the Shenandoah Valley to see great productions of The Comedy of Errors (for an overflow high school audience) and Henry VI, pt. 1, at the American Shakespeare Center's Blackfriars Playhouse in Staunton, Virginia. Also enjoyed a public lecture by Prof. Paul Menzer of Mary Baldwin College on Henry VI and two actor 'talk-back' sessions following the plays.

Gregory John Phelps as Dromio of Syracuse, courtesy of the ASC

Laurel Highlands, Pennsylvania:

October 9-10, 2010

Buthaina and I spent the Columbus Day weekend driving through this beautiful part of western Pennsylvania, southeast of Pittsburgh, visiting Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic Fallingwater, and another residence of his nearby, Kentuck Knob, as well as playing golf and staying at the Nemacolin resort and retracing the trail taken by George Washington during the French and Indian War in 1756, including Fort Necessity.

Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater

The Solar Eclipse Expedition to the Rattlesnake Hills of Wyoming, plus the Snowy Range, Grand Tetons,

Yellowstone, and the Beartooth Range

August 2017

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Seville to Marrakesh

October 1 - 11, 2015

We began our trip with three days in Seville, where Buthaina had spent a semester in the late 1970s, and also visited Cordoba and Granada. We then flew to Marrakesh for 4 magical days walking the souks and alleyways of the old city and driving through the Atlas Mountains to trek by camel to a desert encampment underneath a brilliant canopy of stars.

With Patrick and John Hemingway, Ambos Mundos rooftop bar, Havana, Cuba, September 2014

US-Cuba Hemingway Project:

Protecting the Natural Resources

of the Florida Straits

7-13 September 2014

Buthaina and I were part of a 13-member delegation visiting Cuba to help commemorate the 60th anniversary of Ernest Hemingway's Nobel Prize in Literature, with a special ceremony at Hemingway's estate, Finca Vigia, outside Havana on Thursday, September 11. John and Patrick were guests of honor and were able to hold their grandfather's Nobel Prize medal. The trip also included a trip in fishing boats similar to Hemingway's Pilar down the coast of Cuba to the fishing village of Cojimar, Hemingway's setting for The Old Man and the Sea, the laying of a wreath at Hemingway's bust overlooking the harbor, and lunch at La Terraza Bar at Hemingway's favorite table. We had meetings at the Center for Marine Research (University of Havana) and the Acuario Nacional de Cuba to discuss a US-Cuba research project on marlin, tuna and other game fish of the Florida Straits that are such an important part of Hemingway's Cuba legacy. We stayed at the Ambos Mundos hotel (though Hemingway's room 511 was being renovated while there!) and made the requisite visits for daiquiris at the Floridita bar and mojitos and dinner at La Bodequita del Medio.

Attended the 60th Pugwash Conference on Science and World Affairs in Istanbul from 1-4 November and had many days sightseeing in Istanbul before and after. Highlights were of course the Blue Mosque, Haghia Sofia and Topkapi Palace, but also a wonderful walk along the Bosphorus from Kanlica southward via the Fortress of Europe to Bebek and Arnauvotkoy; a visit to the Orient Express hotel, the Pera Palace, and then lunch at the top of the Galata Tower; the Bosphorus ferry to R. Kavagi for a wonderful lunch of lightly battered fried mussels; and a day in the Old Quarter with Rome friend Claudia Vaughn seeing the Mosaic Museum. I flew to Izmir - an unexpected treat with its picturesque bay harbor and promenade and hip student population - and had two delightful days viewing the Greco-Roman ruins at Pergamon and Ephesus with my tour guide Cenk, who was equally knowledgable and companionable.

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Cuba: January 14-25, 2012

Arts and culture tour of Havana, Matanzas, Varadero and Cardenas sponsored by the Latin America Working Group. Wonderful array of activities and performances of Afro-Cuban dance, rumba, Cuban son and nightclub bands, secondary school and university arts and music students, Sandra Ramos, Fuster, and other artists in their studios, and an architectural walking tour of old Havana led by my longtime friend and colleague from Havana, Jose Altshuler.

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Florida Keys: February 4-9, 2011

Joined my brother Boot and friend John Tulp at John's house near Key West for several days of flats and deep sea fishing, and reef snorkeling. Boot has a blackfin tuna, and we also caught barracuda and shark, and visited Hemingway's home and Truman's Key West White House.

Brother Boot and Black Fin Tuna

Baltimore, Maryland: March 5, 2011

Spent the day at Camden Yards ballpark in Baltimore, joining about 50 other hopefuls in tryouts to be ballboys/ballgirls for the Baltimore Orioles! We took grounders down the left field line where Cal Ripken played shortstop for so many years. Alas, I wasn't selected, but did exhibit some soft hands.

Tryouts at Camden Yards, Baltimore

Valley Forge, Pennsylvania:

February 16, 2011

The day was cold but sunny as I drove north through the Brandywine countryside of southern Pennsylvania to Valley Forge. I hadn't realized what a large geographical area was occupied by Washington's troops during the winter months of 1777-1778, or that the average total of 12,000 troops in camp (soldiers were leaving at the end of their enlistment, or deserting, arriving, all the time!) built more than 1,000 log cabins so that the camp resembled (for colonial America) a medium-size city!